West Coast came home with a rush - kicking the last four goals of the game - to defeat Collingwood by 16 points at The Dome. Michael Gardiner was magificent in the ruck for the winners while Andrew Embley starred up forward kicking four goals. Chris Judd (three goals) showed again that he is one of the superstars of the competition while Ben Cousins and Daniel Kerr dominated the midfield. It was the usual suspects for Collingwood - Buckley and Rocca the best of them.
Port Adelaide defeated the Kangaroos for the first time since they joined the competition. After a tight first half, Port exploded kicking nine goals to one in the second half to secure a 54-point win at AAMI Stadium. Gavin Wanganeen continued his brilliant season and was clearly the best for the winners. The Burgoyne boys - Peter and Shaun - were dynamic across half forward. Adam Simpson, Brent Harvey and Anthony Stevens were the best for the Kangaroos.
Sydney steamrolled Geelong early before cruising to a 39-point win at the SCG. The Swans led by 43 points at the main break thanks to the efforts of Jude Bolton and captain tuart Maxfield. It was an even performance in front of goal with seven players kicking two goals each. Ben Graham showed a welcome return for the Cats kicking four goals.
Carlton scored a much needed win over the Western Bulldogs by seven-points at Optus Oval. Little separated the two sides for most of the day but the Blues held firm in the dying minutes thanks to the likes of Ryan Houlihan and Brett Ratten. Brendan Fevola was good up forward but couldn't kick straight. Nathan Brown did well for the losers as did Matthew Robbins.
Fremantle easily accounted for St Kilda - running out 41-point winners at Subiaco. Justin Longmuir and Jeff Farmer both slotted three goals for the winners but it was in the midfield where the game was won. Des headland continued his excellent recent form as did Peter Bell. Dion Woods and Roger Haydn were outstanding in the back half. Fraser Gehrig kicked five for the Saints.
A rejuvinated Matthew Richardson turned in a special for the Tigers - leading them to a nine-point victory. An amazing 14 goals were kicked in the opening term but the game tightened up considerably from that point on. Richardson kicked four goals for the Tigers and Greg Stafford kicked three to set up the win. At the other end of the ground, David Neitz (four goals) and Russell Robertson (three goals) did most of the damage.
Brisbane cemented its place at the top of the table, scoring a 18-point win over Adelaide at the Gabba. Alastair Lynch was the star for the winners kicking seven goals. Michael Voss dominated the midfield along with Simon Black. Adelaide was best served by Simon Goodwin and Mark Bickley.
